TONY Blair will not face an investigation into whether he misled Parliament over the Iraq War unless “new and relevant” evidence comes to light, according to an influential Commons committee.

The Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee (PACAC) revealed the Iraq Inquiry, led by Sir John Chilcot, did not provide a “sufficient basis” to hold a new investigation into Blair’s actions surrounding the 2003 conflict.

The news comes despite the fact Blair told US President George W. Bush “I will be with you, whatever”, before taking Britain to war in 2003.

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Blair has faced intense criticism over his decision to go to war in Iraq

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The failure to engage Cabinet on such decisions cannot be allowed to happen again, but there is no mechanism to ensure that

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Critics have claimed Blair ignored the Cabinet decision making process in opting to go to war, and the PACAC have raised concerns that there remains insufficient safeguards in place to stop a prime minister from ignoring ministers before making major decisions.

The PACAC report said: "It is generally agreed that the prime minister of the day should never have written 'I will be with you whatever' in his letter to the president of the United States, against the official advice and without the explicit agreement of his key ministers.”

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Tony Blair and President Bush enjoyed a very close relationship

“This is just one of a number of examples identified by the Iraq Inquiry of the breakdown of collective ministerial decision-making over the development of UK policy on Iraq.

“It is no longer acceptable that the present arrangements should continue without stronger means to prevent key ministers, or even the whole Cabinet, from being sidelined.”

The report added that the Cabinet Secretary, currently Sir Jeremy Heywood, should be given the power to formally object to any decision made if it does not follow the correct procedure.

Live images as Tony Blair shows his face at memorial for Iraq war heroes

Thu, March 9, 2017

Tony Blair attends a national memorial honouring the Armed Forces and civilians who served their country during the Gulf War and conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan has been unveiled by the Queen.